1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to surgical instruments, and, more specifically, to surgical instruments for dissecting tissue.
2. Background of Related Art
Abdominal surgery is known to be a contributor in the development of abdominal adhesions. Abdominal adhesions are bands of scar tissue that form between abdominal tissues and organs that cause tissues and organs to adhere together. These adhesions can range from being flimsy like “cobwebs” or being dense as “concrete”, causing complications to the patient years after the surgery is performed.
Conventional methods for dissecting abdominal adhesions include surgery. However, subsequent abdominal surgeries increase the risk that additional adhesions will occur. In addition, during a dissection procedure a surgeon risks accidental cutting or puncturing of an underlying organ. Thus, most surgeons only remove adhesions if they interrupt the surgical field or interfere with the procedure.
A concern for dissecting or reducing adhesions is the time taken and the difficulty as the density of the adhesion increases. One delay is the tedious task of manual dissection which must be performed in order to reveal obscured sections of bowel. Depending on the adhesion, the surgeon may use a different surgical instrument to dissect each type of adhesion. For example, for a flimsy adhesion a scissors or a blunt dissection instrument may be used and for a dense adhesion an electro-cautery instrument or an ultrasonic instrument may be used.
Accordingly, there is a continuing need for improved surgical instruments that reduce delays during procedures to remove adhesions.